Buttons



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet H. S. THAYER.

' MANUFAGTURING BUTTONS. I No. 392,876. Patented Nov. 6, 1888.

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MANUFACTURING BUTTONS.

No. 392,376.. Patented Nov. 6, 1888.

INVENTDH.

N. PEYER. Fhulo-Ulnognphar, Washington, D a

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HERBERT S. THAYER, OF PROVIDENCE, RIIODE ISLAND.

MANUFACTURING BUTTONS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 392,376, dated November 6, 1888.

Application filed December 13,1887. Serial No. 257,755. (No model.)

' To all? whom it may concern: 7

Be it known that I, HERBERT S. THAYER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Providence, in the' county of Providence and State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Manufacture of Buttons and Analogous Articles; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters and figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification. w

This invention relates to an improvement in the art of making buttons, upholstery-nails, and other similar articles, and has for its object to obviate the difficulties which have heretofore existed in their construction by the known methods of manufacture.

Previous to myinvention articles of the class mentioned have been made by cutting 'out blanks of the desired size,inserting the eye or fastening device into the blanks, and then pressing the said blanks into form, and thereby securing the said eye or fastening device therein, the main strength of the button depending largely, if not entirely, on an after coating or filling before the button is japanned or colored. The blanks as they are cut from a strip have rough ragged edges and sides, and the edges of the blanks when pressed into shape still remain rough and ragged, necessitating the smoothing of the same by tumbling or shaving before they can be finished, as it is essential to have the circumferential edges of the button smooth, with no roughness or imperfections to injure the button-hole or articles in contact when in use. By means of my improvement I am enabled to obviate these difficulties and to make a much stronger and better finished button having a perfectly smooth edge, and to also obviate the necessity of using a filler for the purpose of adding strength thereto.

To this end my improvement consists,essentially,in subjecting a button-blank to a rolling process, which compresses, rounds, and hardens the corners and edges of said blank, leaving the central portion of the blank in its nor inal condition as it existed in the strip from I which it was cut, so that the eye or fastening device may be readily inserted thereiu,as well as other improvements in the art of making buttons, substantially as will hereinafter be more fully described, and pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a plan view of a blank as cut from a sheet or strip of material. Fig. 2 is a sectional side elevation of the same. Fig. 3 represents a plan of the blank with the edges rounded and hardened. Fig. I is a central sectional side elevation of the same. Fig. 5 is a like view of the rolled blank with an eyeshank inserted therein. Fig. 6 represents a complete button. Fig.7 is a central sectional view of the rolled blank with a nail inserted therein. Fig. 8 represents a complete upholstery-nail. Fig. 9 represents-a top plan view of a machine forcarrying my improvement into operation. Fig. 10 is a side elevation, and Fig. 11 is a transverse sectionalview, of the same.

'Referring again to the drawings, a represents a button-blank as cut from a sheet or strip of material; a, the blank after passing through the rolling process. 0 indicates the hardened rounded corners of the rolled blank. a. represents the completed button-head, and b the eye-shank, nail, or other fastening device.

The machine employed in the present instance to illustrate my improved method or process is shown in Sheet 2 of the drawings, and consists of a bed-piece or frame, A, providing with a sliding head, B, adapted to reciprocate in said bed-piece, said sliding head being operated by the crank-wheel 0 through the medium of the connection D, in the usual manner,by hand-wheel or other suitable power. The bed-pieceA is provided on the front side with a rectangular-shaped strip provided on its upper side with a groove, 1, formed longitudinally its entire length, said groove being concave in crosssection, as shown in Fig. 11. The sliding head 13 is provided with a likeshaped strip having a correspondinglyshaped groove, 2, on its lower surface formed longitudinally its entire length, the two grooves 1 and 2 being located directly opposite each other, as fully shown in Fig. 11 of the drawings. The front of the machine is further provided with an opening, 3, formed one half in the bed-piece A and the other half in the sliding head B, through said parts into the grooves 1 and 2, the opening being formed when the sliding head B is in position, as shown in Figs. 9 and 10 of the drawings. The bed-piece A is further provided with a chute, 4:, located opposite the opening 3, of a size and shape to allow free passage therethrough of a column of blanks, as shown in Figs. 9 and 11 of the drawings. The outer end of the bed-piece is provided with a chute, 5, formed coincident with the groove 1, down which the blanks are passed after being passed through the machine, as shown in Figs. 9 and 10.

In carrying out my improvement the blanks a are first cut out from a sheet or strip of suitable material in the usual manner, preferably from leather or leather-board, as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2. The blanks are then fed into the chute 4 and intermittently passed through the opening 3 into the grooves 1 and 2 of the machine. The sliding head 13 is then moved forward to its extreme, rolling the blank forward until it reaches the chute 5, when it drops from the grooves down said chute. In its progress through the grooves l and 2 the blank is made to conform to the shape of said grooves, the corners and edges becoming compressed and consolidated, forming the roundedged blank a, illustrated in Figs. 3 and 4, leaving the central portion of the blank sub stantially in its normal condition as it existed in the blank previous to passing through the machinethat is to say, the rolling process compacts and hardens the cornersc ofthe blank, making them round and compact and smooth, but does not materially change the fiber of the central portion, where the eye-shank b or fastening device is to be inserted. The blank is now ready for the fastening device, which is inserted therein by any of the known methods now in use, Fig. 5 showing an eye and Fig. 7 a nail inserted into said blank. The blank, with the fastening device inserted therein, is then subjected to a heavy pressure, which forms the fastening device I) therein, forming the complete button, as illustrated in Figs. (5 and S. The addition of japan or color is all that is now required to finish the button ready for use, no alter filling or manipulation being re quired.

By means of my improvement buttons pro vided with eye-shanks, nails, split pins, or other fastening devices can be produced with ease and dispatch, making a stronger and better finished article, and also better adapted to take the final coating of japan or coloringmatter. The edges of the button are rendered compact and firm and not liable to fiake or become rough and ragged. They are also smooth, and therefore cannot injure the button-hole or articles in contact. Asuperior article in all respects is thus produced at no advance in the cost of manufacture. My method of manufacturing is equally well adapted to the making of buttons, upholstery-nails, and analogous articles.

I prefer to perform the operation of rolling the button-blank before the eye or fastening is inserted; but it is clear that this operation might well be performed after the insertion of the eye or fastening device; or the two operations might be performed simultaneously.

If desired, the blank may be rolled so that the central portion would be harder than as in its normal condition, the degree of hardness or solidity depending on the requirements of the button in the trade.

I have made no claim in this application for the machine for performing the operation described, as the same will be made the subject of a separate application.

Having described my invention, I claim 1. That improvement in the art of manufacturing buttons which consists in first cutting out the blanks by any of the known methods, and at a subsequent stage in the operation of manufacture hardening and compressing the circumferential edges by rolling, substantially as described.

2. That improvement in the art of making buttons which consists in cutting out a blank of the desired size, hardening and rounding the edges by rolling or compression, leaving the central portion of the blank substantially in its normal condition, inserting the eye or fastening device into said blank, and then compressing the blank into the desired shape, substantially as herein set forth.

3. The method herein described of making buttons, consisting in hardening and rolling the edges of a button-blank, leaving the cen tral portion in its normal condition for the in- I sertion of an eye-shank or other fastening deit into the desired shape and firmly secures vice, inserting said eye-shank or fastening device into said blank, compressing the same into the required shape to form the button, and then coloring and finishing said button, substantially as specified.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

HERBERT S. THAYER.

\Vitnesscs:

F. A. SMITH, J12, CHARLES GREENE. 

